Ian Karkull (New Earth)
Karkull was not dead however but fled to the Dark Dimension worshiped by the denizens of Ragnor known as the Shadowlands. The priests of Ragnor sacrificed the shadows of their victims to the forces of the Shadowlands and Karkull collected these shadows to empower himself. In 1942, he used the arcane forces in the Shadowlands to learn the names of future presidents of the United States and dispatched a strike force of super-villains to murder them (Alexander the Great, Wotan, Catwoman, Tarantula, Zor, Lightning Master, Sieur Satan and Doctor Doog. This effort was opposed by the Justice Society of America, which thwarted each of the villains except for Karkull's ally, Wotan. What effect the murder of Wotan's victim was has never been revealed. Tracking the trails of the emissary villains, the JSA confronted Karkull, blasting him with their combined powers. The forces exceeded Karkull's ability to contain the ancient shadows, when exploded out of him, seemingly tearing him apart. The radiation of the shadows' departure bathed the assembled heroes, apparently extending their lives and affecting them in other, unknown ways. The people affected included Atom (Al Pratt), Doctor Fate (Kent Nelson), Flash (Jay Garrick), Green Lantern (Alan Scott), Hawkman, Hourman (Rex Tyler), Johnny Thunder, Sandman (Wesley Dodds), Spectre (Jim Corrigan) , Starman (Ted Knight) and non-members Hawkgirl and Joan Williams. The radiation vastly extended their lifespans. Darkness Falls Nothing is known of Ian Karkull's activities between 1942 and the year 2000, when he approached the hero known as Obsidian. In bathing the heroes in 1942, Karkull had contaminated the genes of Alan Scott, the original Green Lantern and father of Obsidian. Obsidian's mother, the villain known as the Thorn, was psychotic and passed her instability onto her son. Further corrupted by Karkull's influence and the abusiveness of his own father, Obsidian joined Karkull in unleashing the forces of the Shadowlands on Milwaukee. This act attracted the attention of the newly-reformed JSA, which engaged the pair. Karkull used the shadows under his command to possess the JSA while Obsidian used his own powers of darkness to spread a wave of blackness over Milwaukee. Believing himself in control, Karkull decided to dispense with the young hero. To his dismay, he learned the Obsidian had not only succumbed to the Shadowlands but had become one with it. It was Karkull himself who had outlived his usefulness. Obsidian turned on Karkull, absorbing the elder villain back into the Shadowlands. Using the now greatly magnified range of his powers, Obsidian then spread a cloak of blackness across the globe. The final fate of Karkull and whether he can return from whatever realm he was sent by Obsidian remains unknown. | Powers = * : He has mastered certain mystic forces allowing him to access a dark realm known as the Shadowlands. Using this access, he has been able to utilize the shadows trapped by the ancient mages of Ragnor to further his own ends. ** : Karkull is no longer human in form, being composed of a dark shadowy material. It also may have altered responses to normal forces like gravity, impact or the passage of time. ** : This form is intangible and easily hidden in darkness. ** ** ** | Abilities = * : He has considerable scientific acumen, having invented the device that made men into shadows based on arcane secrets in the city of Ragnor. * | Strength = | Weaknesses = | Equipment = | Transportation = | Weapons = | Notes = | Trivia = | DC = | Wikipedia = Ian Karkull | Links = }} Category:Archaeologists